Apparatus for the production of high pressure fluid



T. C. KANE APPARATUS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF HIGH PRESSURE FLUID Filed May 21, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 lNVENTdR Thomas C. Kane @W 4 Mm gqQ Aug. 22, 1961 T. c. KANE 2,996,993

APPARATUS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF HIGH PRESSURE FLUID Filed May 21, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.2.

INVENTOR Thomas C. Kane T. C. KANE Aug. 22, 1961 APPARATUS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF HIGH PRESSURE FLUID 3 Sheets-Sheet. 3

Filed May 21. 1954 INVENTOR Thomas C. Kane United This invention relates to an apparatusfor the production of high pressure fluid and particularly to an apparatus for the intermittent production of such high pressure fluid suitable for descaling apparatus and the like.

Many industrial applications require the use of high pressure fluids delivered at intervals. One of the most important of such applications is in the descaling of hot metal parts with high pressure water. At the present time, descaling operations using high pressure Water are operated from expensive multistage centrifugal pumps or reciprocating plunger pumps. This type of apparatus is prohibitively large and expensive for small establishments. There has been no inexpensive alternative apparatus available for use in such establishments.

rates stem The present invention provides an inexpensive, highly efficient apparatus for the intermittent production of high pressure liquid. Preferably the apparatus provides a pair of cylinders having a common axis, pistons in said cylinders connected together for simultaneous movement, means connected to one of said cylinders maintaining continuous load on the piston therein, means connected to the same cylinder to move said piston against the load, means irreversibly delivering liquid to the second cylinder on one side of the piston therein simultaneously with the movement of the first piston against the load, means releasing the piston, moving means and means connecting the second cylinder to a discharge opening whereby the liquid contained therein is discharged by the load. Means are provided for cutting off the liquid supply to the second cylinder when the piston moving means is released. Preferably the gas reservoir connected to the first piston is a series of high pressure tanks containing nitrogen or similar gas under pressure. The piston moving means connected to the cylinder is preferably a source of hydraulic fluid under pressure. The means delivering fluid to the second cylinder on one side of the piston is preferably an ordinary water line operating at city water pressure. The means for cutting off the fluid supply to the second cylinder may be an ordinary check valve and the means for connecting the cylinder to a high pressure discharge opening may be an ordinary low pressure relief valve.

While certain salient features of this invention have been pointed out above, other features, objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following description and the accompanying drawings in which FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of an apparatus for the intermittent production of high pressure fluid according to this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the apparatus of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an end FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 4 is a section through the axially aligned cylinders of FIGURE 1.

Referring to the drawings I have illustrated a base platform 10 carrying a vertical frame 11. A pair of cylinders 12 and 13 are axially aligned on a vertical axis within the frame 11. The upper cylinder 12 is pivoted in a yoke 14 at the top of the frame 11 for movement therein. Each of the cylinders 12 and 13 is provided with a piston 15 and 16 connected by a common shaft elevation of the apparatus of "ice 17 so that the two pistons move simultaneously. The upper cylinder 12 is connected at the end adjacent the pivot 14 to a series of high pressure gas tanks 18 connested in parallel and filled with nitrogen under pressure. The cylinder and tanks are connected by flexible hose 18a and valves 19. The opposite end of the cylinder 12 is connected to a hydraulic pump 20 driven by an electric motor 21. The hydraulic liquid from the pump 20 is carried through a hydraulic valve 22 and high pressure hose 22a. A by-pass line 23 is provided from thehydraulic valve into an oil tank 24 mounted about thehydraulic pump. The lower cylinder 13 is connected to :a city Water main 25 through a check valve 26 and a T 27. .One side of the T leads'to the cylinder 13. The opposite side of the T leads to a low pressurerelief valve 27' which opens into the discharge line 28 going to the descaling unit 29. The descaling unit may, of course, be replaced by any other unit requiring the use of high pres sure fluid.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows. The piston 15 in the upper cylinder is raised to its highest position by the action of the hydraulic liquid delivered from the hydraulic pump. The nitrogen is simultaneously compressed into the tanks 18. Simultaneously with the raising of piston 15, piston 16 is raised in cylinder 13 and water is delivered into the system through the water line 25, check valve 26 and T 27. When the piston 15 reaches its uppermost position, the feed of hydraulic liquid to piston 15 is cut off and the liquid in the cylinder is released whereupon the nitrogen which is compressed in the high pressure tanks forces the piston 15 downwardly. The downward movement of the piston 15 forces the water which has been delivered to the lower cylinder 13 beneath the piston 16 out through the low pressure relief valve and into the descaling cabinet 29 where it is discharged against the piece to be descaled. At the same time the hydraulic liquid is forced out of the first cylinder through valve 22 to tank 24-. At the end of the discharge stroke, valve 22 is automatically actuated whereupon the pump 2t forces hydraulic liquid back into cylinder 12 driving piston 15 upward to compress the nitrogen back into the pressure tanks 18. At the end of the charging stroke valve 22 automatically returns to neutral, hydraulic liquid is trapped under piston 15 and the pump 20 circulates oil at no pressure from the tank 24 through valve 22 back to tarik 24. The operation of the valve 22 to discharge may be controlled by a simple foot switch 30 at the descaling cabinet. The automatic operation of valve 22 to terminate the charge and discharge cycles may be controlled by limit switches at the extremities of the strokes or by any other conventional method. The wiring for such an arrangement is conventional and is accordingly not shown.

While I have illustrated and described certain preferred embodiments of my invention it will be understood that it may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for the intermittent production of high pressure fluid comprising a pair of cylinders having a common axis, pistons in said cylinders connected together for simultaneous movement, a series of pressure tanks connected together and to one side of the first cylinder, said tanks containing nitrogen under superatmospheric pressure continuously exerting pressure on the piston in said cylinder, hydraulic means connected to the cylinder intermittently delivering hydraulic fluid to the cylinder on the side of the piston opposite the nitrogen whereby the piston is moved against the pressure of the nitrogen, means delivering water to the second cylinder on one side of the piston therein simultaneously with the delivery of hydraulic fluid to the first cylinder, means cutting ofi the water supply at the termination of the delivery of hydraulic fluid and means releasing the hydraulic fluid and connecting the second cylinder to a high pressure discharge opening, whereby the water is discharged by the pressure of the nitrogen.

2. A descaler compressor unit delivering high pressure water to a descaler nozzle comprising a cylinder, a piston in said cylinder, means connected to one end of the cylinder maintaining continuous superatmospheric gas pressure on the piston therein, hydraulic means connected to the other end of said cylinder to deliver hydraulic fluid to the side of the piston opposite the gas to move the piston against the pressure of the gas, a piston rod connected to said piston and movable therewith, a second cylinder, a piston in said second cylinder, a connection between the piston and the piston rod whereby the second piston moves in unison with the first piston, means delivering water to the second cylinder, valve means automatically cutting 01f the water supply means when the delivery of hydraulic fluid ceases, means releasing the hydraulic fluid and discharge means carrying the water from the second cylinder to the descaler nozzle under the 5 pressure of the gas.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

